The Real Boone Podcast

Being a songwriter in the age of AI with John Lucas

Singer/songwriter John Lucas has built the kind of career most musicians only imagine—over 40 million Spotify streams, songs licensed by Google, MTV, and Freeform, and a loyal following grown over more than a dozen years. Now putting down roots in Boone, NC, he joins us in the High Country of North Carolina for a honest conversation about what success in music actually looks like from the inside. We get into the numbers most artists won't say out loud—what Spotify really pays per stream—along with the rise of AI-generated music and what it means for working songwriters. And underneath it all, the more personal question: how John feels about the music he's made, and what it's like to keep creating when the industry keeps changing the rules. It's a candid look at art, money, and meaning from one of Boone's most accomplished creatives. 🔗 ⁠⁠John Lucas⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/julietrath/?hl=en] 🌐 ⁠⁠Real Boone Studios⁠⁠ [https://www.realboone.com/] 📸 ⁠⁠Instagram ⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/realboonestudios] 💬 ⁠⁠evan@realboone.com [evan@realboone.com]

Midwifery & Women's Health with Carrington Pertalion

Carrington Doolittle Pertalion is a Certified Nurse Midwife at AppHealthCare in Boone, NC, and has been caring for women across the High Country of North Carolina for more than 25 years. In this episode, Carrington walks us through her unlikely path to midwifery — dropping out of high school at 16, working in commercial fishing, and finally discovering her calling the day her daughter was delivered by a nurse midwife. She talks about going back to school, the risk of opening her own private practice straight out of midwifery school in 2002, and what it means to come full circle back to public health at AppHealthCare, where her very first nursing job in Boone began. We get into what most people misunderstand about midwifery, why healthcare should be about the person in front of you rather than the clock on the wall, and what 25 years of caring for women in the same community actually feels like. 🌐 ⁠⁠Real Boone Studios⁠⁠ [https://www.realboone.com/] 📸 ⁠⁠Instagram ⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/realboonestudios] 💬 ⁠⁠evan@realboone.com [evan@realboone.com]

The Story of Baker Forge with Coy Baker

Coy Baker, Founder and CEO of Baker Forge & Tool, joins us to talk about building one of America's leading Damascus steel manufacturers in Boone, NC. Coy started his blacksmithing journey in the mountains of Western North Carolina in 2016, engineered his own 25-ton hydraulic forging press, and in 2020 developed a method for fusion welding copper to carbon steel — the breakthrough behind the brand's signature CopperMai and BronzeMai laminated steels. In this episode we cover manufacturing in the High Country of North Carolina, what it takes to run a family-owned operation alongside his brother Jay (Shop Manager) and father Bruce (CFO), the innovation behind proprietary steels like Mosaic Damascus and Stainless SanMai, and how Baker Forge supplies knife makers, artisans, and major knife companies from a single shop on Waterstone Drive — with steel shipping to Asia, Australia, Europe, and across North America. 🔗 ⁠Baker Forge [https://www.bakerforge.com] 🌐 ⁠⁠Real Boone Studios⁠⁠ [https://www.realboone.com/] 📸 ⁠⁠Instagram ⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/realboonestudios] 💬 ⁠⁠evan@realboone.com [evan@realboone.com]

The Story of Common Good Co. with Jacob & Melina Daniels

Description: Jacob and Melina Daniels are the husband-and-wife co-owners of Common Good Co., an artisan gallery and fine art space on King Street in Boone, NC. In this episode, you'll hear how two App State art students went from selling their work at traveling markets to owning and restoring a 100-year-old historic building in the heart of downtown — and what it actually took to build something from nothing. Expect a candid conversation about creative entrepreneurship, the risks of betting on your craft, and what it means to create a space that serves both artists and the community.

How a 26 Year Old Became The Mayor of Boone with Dalton George

Dalton George is the Mayor of Boone, NC and the youngest mayor in North Carolina. Before the title, he's a kid from Midway who came to App State and fell in love with the mountains. In this episode, we get to know Dalton — who he is outside of politics, what shaped him, and how he ended up running a town at 26. We also get into what the job actually looks like day to day, how Town Council works, and what it's like leading a college town where students outnumber year-round residents. We talk housing affordability, student voting, the Howard Street project, and where Boone is headed over the next five years. Support local stories from the High Country—follow and share! 🌐 ⁠⁠Real Boone Studios⁠⁠ [https://www.realboone.com/] 📸 ⁠⁠Instagram ⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/realboonestudios] 💬 ⁠⁠evan@realboone.com [evan@realboone.com]